Chancellor Jose Sartarelli: Extend reach of UNC system

Tuesday

Apr 11, 2017 at 5:00 AMApr 11, 2017 at 3:28 PM

By Jose V. Sartarelli

We learn early in life to ask “why,” but I often prefer to ask “why not.”

Our perspectives are shaped by our own experiences, and mine were shaped by growing up in the developing country of Brazil; the opportunity to earn an education in the U.S. through the Fulbright program; a successful career in international business; public service as a business school dean; and, most recently, as chancellor of North Carolina’s coastal university, UNC Wilmington. Needless to say, I deeply appreciate the benefits of education.

We often hear that higher education is at a crossroads. My experience is that education has always changed along with the world as a whole -- and should continue to change to meet current and future needs.

Education changes people and societies for the better. While it is true that not everyone wants or needs a college degree, the opportunity for higher education should be available to everyone, whether through a community college or a university. Access is a central theme of the new UNC strategic plan, as well as affordability and efficiency, student success, economic impact and community engagement, and excellent and diverse institutions.

The UNC System has a long and distinguished history, always evolving to meet the state’s needs. How should we continue to change to meet the goals of the new strategic plan? Each of the 16 UNC campuses has a distinct and important role in the answer, yet collectively we must educate more of our citizens.

We are a state of approximately 10 million people today, likely to reach 12 million by 2035 and possibly 15 million by 2050. Even if we do not grow that quickly, we will grow and need to plan now for that growth.

The NC Chamber and the NC Bankers Association recently distributed the 2017 Competitiveness Redbook: Key Indicators of North Carolina’s Business Climate. It shows that North Carolina ranks 25th among the states on the percentage (28.7 percent) of our population who have a bachelor’s degree or higher. The national average is 30.1 percent. We rank 26th in the percentage (10.1 percent) with an advanced degree, compared to 11.4 percent nationally. There is clearly room for improvement in both measures.

Their data also show that the UNC System currently enrolls only 1.79 percent of the state’s population in four-year programs, which ranks 41st (the bottom 10 of all states). If North Carolina had the same rate as Virginia (2.03%), UNC would need to enroll 24,000 more students. If North Carolina had the same rate as Georgia (2.45%), UNC would need to enroll an additional 66,000 students. Those numbers are before the growth that is expected in our state. To match Georgia’s current enrollment rate, with 12 million people in North Carolina in 2035, UNC would need an additional 79,200 undergraduate students.

UNC currently enrolls approximately 180,000 undergraduates and 45,000 in graduate programs. Let’s say that we need to increase the number of undergraduates (to catch up with other states and to meet the needs of a growing population) by somewhere between 50,000 and 70,000 over the next twenty years. Where can the benefits of higher education “as far as practicable, be extended to the people of the State free of expense” as required by Article IX, Section 9 of the North Carolina Constitution?

Some campuses rightly are focused on the need to increase graduate and professional programs, to meet the shortage of advanced degrees and to grow the economy through innovation and research. Some have smaller enrollments by design, wish to remain more traditional in their focus, and would not be able to scale up significantly in the short run.

Fortunately, due to the long history of support for UNC, its leadership and thoughtful development over many decades, and the diversity of its campuses, there are UNC campuses spread around the state that are well-positioned to provide an excellent education for the growing numbers of qualified students.

These campuses range from the mountains to the coast, in population centers and more rural areas, and are distinctive in their mix of programs and students. They provide many affordable choices for our citizens.

From my perspective, our campus at UNC Wilmington is a model of a regional comprehensive university with selected doctoral programs and strong performance in measures of student success. Over the past three decades, UNCW has grown significantly in both quantity and quality.

Campuses like ours are very well-positioned to continue serving our state as it grows and prospers, with an increasingly educated workforce and citizenry.

Why not?

The writer is chancellor of the University of North Carolina Wilmington.